Frequently Asked Questions

Pak-Pro is a folding carton manufacturer and paperboard box supplier. We design, print, finish, and deliver custom packaging for brands across food and beverage, retail, health and beauty, and pharmaceutical and supplement industries. We’ve been doing this for over 70 years out of two facilities in Georgia.

We specialize in folding cartons and paperboard boxes. That covers retail shelf packaging, quick-service food packaging, point-of-sale display packaging, and high-design packaging for health and beauty products. We do not produce flexible packaging, pouches, or rigid containers.

We work across food and beverage, retail, health and beauty, and pharma and supplements. Across all of them, we bring the same capabilities to bear: in-house design, premium finishing options including foil stamping and embossing, flexible run sizes, and the turnaround reliability that production schedules depend on.

Our customers include growing regional brands, national retailers and their suppliers, and packaging brokers. We also work directly with distribution centers and serve as a manufacturing partner for other packaging companies that need capabilities they don’t have in-house.

The honest answer is service accountability. Once a customer finds a reliable packaging supplier, they don’t leave — and we’ve held onto customers who could have moved to larger manufacturers because of how we handle problems when they come up. You reach people here who know your project. That said, we also invest in capabilities that set us apart technically: dual in-line coating, a full in-house design team, and expertise in premium finishing that many regional suppliers don’t offer.

We operate two plants:

• 1050 Triad Court, Marietta, GA
• 381 W. Doyle Street, Toccoa, GA

We serve customers throughout the Southeastern U.S. and work with regional and national accounts across the country.

Yes. Brokers are a core part of how we work, and we treat them with the same responsiveness we’d give a direct customer. The difference is that with brokers, our reliability reflects directly on their relationship with their client — so communication and follow-through are even more important. In many broker relationships, that communication eventually becomes direct with the end customer, which is a reflection of the trust we build. See our brokers page for more.

Approximately 95% of what we produce and process is recyclable. Waste materials — paperboard, metals, inks, and coatings — are recycled or returned to our suppliers for repurposing. We are also transitioning to LED lighting across our facilities to reduce energy use. We can provide recyclability documentation for customers who want to apply certified logos to their packaging. See our sustainability page for more details.

Most projects follow this sequence: initial consultation to scope the project, provide a detailed estimate, substrate and structure selection, design (collaborative or fully in-house), proofing and sample review, production, and delivery. The specifics vary based on whether you’re coming to us with a finished design or starting from scratch. Learn more about our capabilities or get in touch to walk through your specific project.

Yes. We can work from a finished design, an existing dieline, a rough concept, or nothing at all. We have a full in-house design team that handles structural design, graphic design, and specialty work. If your files need adjustments for production, we’ll flag those before anything goes to press.

We work with a wide range of paperboard materials and don’t restrict ourselves to a single substrate type. That includes heat-sensitive substrates for hot food applications, uncoated and metallic boards, and poly-coated boards that can be folded and glued on both sides. We also maintain strategic supplier relationships that give us early access to new paperboard types and coatings as they become available. If you’re unsure which material fits your product, our team can help you evaluate options. See our substrates page for more details.

We offer offset and flexographic printing. Offset is particularly well-suited for projects that require sharp text, precise color matching, and premium print quality.

We offer foil stamping, embossing, debossing, matte and gloss coatings, soft touch finishes, spot UV, die cutting, and window cutting. One capability worth noting: we can apply two different coatings in a single production pass — for example, combining a matte base with a spot gloss accent. We also offer offline secondary finishing for packaging that requires handles, ribbons, or other embellishments that can’t be applied in-line. See all finishing options.

This varies by customer and project. Contact us to discuss your specific inventory and storage needs.

Both. We have a full in-house design team that handles structural design, graphic design, CAD work, and prototyping. Customers can hand off the entire design process to us, collaborate with us, or simply supply finished files. If you already have a design team, we can work alongside them to make sure files are production-ready.

Yes. We produce printed mockup cartons and CAD samples before production runs. The sample you receive reflects the actual finished product — same structure, same glue points, same materials. We’ve also produced mockups specifically for product photo shoots.

We work through revisions collaboratively until the proof is right before production begins. The number of rounds depends on the complexity of the project and how finalized your input is at the start. We’ll set clear expectations at the outset of your project.

We work with a range of order sizes, from a few thousand cartons up to high-volume production runs. We don’t publish a fixed minimum because it depends on the project. Reach out to discuss your volume needs.

Yes. We serve both growing brands with smaller initial runs and national accounts with high-volume, ongoing production needs. Consistency across large runs — same colors, same dimensions, same structure — is a core part of what we do.

Earlier is better. Involving us in the structural design phase before a product is finalized can prevent costly changes later — especially when material selection, print method, or finish requirements have downstream implications for the product itself. Early collaboration also gives us time to produce samples for testing before you’re committed to production quantities.

We have experience shipping to distribution centers, including those serving national retail accounts. Contact us to discuss your specific distribution requirements.

Turnaround varies by project. Because we roll paperboard specific to each customer’s project — rather than pulling from generic stock — lead times reflect that customization. We’ll give you a timeline estimate as part of the initial scoping process.

We can accommodate expedited requests when capacity allows, but we are not primarily a rush supplier. If your timeline is tight, let us know upfront, and we’ll tell you honestly what’s feasible.

The more you can share upfront, the faster we can help, but you don’t need to have everything figured out. Useful starting points include: what you’re packaging, your target audience, any shelf environment considerations, your approximate volume, and whether you have existing designs or need us to start from scratch. Get in touch, and we’ll take it from there.

Yes. You’ll work directly with someone who knows your project, not a general customer service queue. That continuity is part of how we operate.

Contact your project representative directly. We don’t route customers through a general inbox or ticketing system when issues arise. If something comes up, you’re reaching a person who knows your job.

Beyond aesthetics, food packaging has functional requirements that affect material and finish selection: grease resistance, heat tolerance, food-safe coatings, and non-transferable inks are all considerations depending on the application. Pak-Pro holds an AIB food defense certification and has extensive experience with both food service (hot food, quick-serve) and retail food packaging. If your product has specific handling, temperature, or compliance requirements, we’ll need to know those upfront. Learn more about our food and beverage capabilities.

Document control is the central compliance requirement in this space. We provide finished goods verification and certificate of analysis documentation confirming that what appears on the carton accurately reflects the product contents. We hold an AIB food defense certification applicable to supplement packaging and allow customer audits at our facilities. See our pharma and supplements page for more.

That depends on the product and the retail environment, but certain principles apply consistently: color accuracy and consistency are non-negotiable for shelf recognition, structural integrity affects perceived quality, and premium finishes — embossing, soft touch, foil — directly influence purchase decisions in higher-margin categories. We’ve supplied packaging to independent retailers and major national retail chains, and we understand the technical requirements of both. Learn more about retail packaging capabilities.

Yes. Quick-service food packaging is one of our primary specialties. We produce cartons designed for hot food applications — including heat-resistant board coatings and food-safe materials — and we understand the volume, consistency, and timing demands that QSR accounts require. See our food and beverage page.